el

Liberalism’s betrayal of itself—and the way back

Source

The Economist

Release date

14 February 2019

Expert

Hans Kundnani

In the news type

Op-ed

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The short variant of optic atrophy 1 (OPA1) improves cell survival under oxidative stress [Bioenergetics]

Optic atrophy 1 (OPA1) is a dynamin protein that mediates mitochondrial fusion at the inner membrane. OPA1 is also necessary for maintaining the cristae and thus essential for supporting cellular energetics. OPA1 exists as membrane-anchored long form (L-OPA1) and short form (S-OPA1) that lacks the transmembrane region and is generated by cleavage of L-OPA1. Mitochondrial dysfunction and cellular stresses activate the inner membrane–associated zinc metallopeptidase OMA1 that cleaves L-OPA1, causing S-OPA1 accumulation. The prevailing notion has been that L-OPA1 is the functional form, whereas S-OPA1 is an inactive cleavage product in mammals, and that stress-induced OPA1 cleavage causes mitochondrial fragmentation and sensitizes cells to death. However, S-OPA1 contains all functional domains of dynamin proteins, suggesting that it has a physiological role. Indeed, we recently demonstrated that S-OPA1 can maintain cristae and energetics through its GTPase activity, despite lacking fusion activity. Here, applying oxidant insult that induces OPA1 cleavage, we show that cells unable to generate S-OPA1 are more sensitive to this stress under obligatory respiratory conditions, leading to necrotic death. These findings indicate that L-OPA1 and S-OPA1 differ in maintaining mitochondrial function. Mechanistically, we found that cells that exclusively express L-OPA1 generate more superoxide and are more sensitive to Ca2+-induced mitochondrial permeability transition, suggesting that S-OPA1, and not L-OPA1, protects against cellular stress. Importantly, silencing of OMA1 expression increased oxidant-induced cell death, indicating that stress-induced OPA1 cleavage supports cell survival. Our findings suggest that S-OPA1 generation by OPA1 cleavage is a survival mechanism in stressed cells.




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Long noncoding RNA pncRNA-D reduces cyclin D1 gene expression and arrests cell cycle through RNA m6A modification [RNA]

pncRNA-D is an irradiation-induced 602-nt long noncoding RNA transcribed from the promoter region of the cyclin D1 (CCND1) gene. CCND1 expression is predicted to be inhibited through an interplay between pncRNA-D and RNA-binding protein TLS/FUS. Because the pncRNA-D–TLS interaction is essential for pncRNA-D–stimulated CCND1 inhibition, here we studied the possible role of RNA modification in this interaction in HeLa cells. We found that osmotic stress induces pncRNA-D by recruiting RNA polymerase II to its promoter. pncRNA-D was highly m6A-methylated in control cells, but osmotic stress reduced the methylation and also arginine methylation of TLS in the nucleus. Knockdown of the m6A modification enzyme methyltransferase-like 3 (METTL3) prolonged the half-life of pncRNA-D, and among the known m6A recognition proteins, YTH domain-containing 1 (YTHDC1) was responsible for binding m6A of pncRNA-D. Knockdown of METTL3 or YTHDC1 also enhanced the interaction of pncRNA-D with TLS, and results from RNA pulldown assays implicated YTHDC1 in the inhibitory effect on the TLS–pncRNA-D interaction. CRISPR/Cas9-mediated deletion of candidate m6A site decreased the m6A level in pncRNA-D and altered its interaction with the RNA-binding proteins. Of note, a reduction in the m6A modification arrested the cell cycle at the G0/G1 phase, and pncRNA-D knockdown partially reversed this arrest. Moreover, pncRNA-D induction in HeLa cells significantly suppressed cell growth. Collectively, these findings suggest that m6A modification of the long noncoding RNA pncRNA-D plays a role in the regulation of CCND1 gene expression and cell cycle progression.




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RNA helicase-regulated processing of the Synechocystis rimO-crhR operon results in differential cistron expression and accumulation of two sRNAs [Gene Regulation]

The arrangement of functionally-related genes in operons is a fundamental element of how genetic information is organized in prokaryotes. This organization ensures coordinated gene expression by co-transcription. Often, however, alternative genetic responses to specific stress conditions demand the discoordination of operon expression. During cold temperature stress, accumulation of the gene encoding the sole Asp–Glu–Ala–Asp (DEAD)-box RNA helicase in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, crhR (slr0083), increases 15-fold. Here, we show that crhR is expressed from a dicistronic operon with the methylthiotransferase rimO/miaB (slr0082) gene, followed by rapid processing of the operon transcript into two monocistronic mRNAs. This cleavage event is required for and results in destabilization of the rimO transcript. Results from secondary structure modeling and analysis of RNase E cleavage of the rimO–crhR transcript in vitro suggested that CrhR plays a role in enhancing the rate of the processing in an auto-regulatory manner. Moreover, two putative small RNAs are generated from additional processing, degradation, or both of the rimO transcript. These results suggest a role for the bacterial RNA helicase CrhR in RNase E-dependent mRNA processing in Synechocystis and expand the known range of organisms possessing small RNAs derived from processing of mRNA transcripts.




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A kainate receptor-selective RNA aptamer [Neurobiology]

Kainate and α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) receptors are two major, closely related receptor subtypes in the glutamate ion channel family. Excessive activities of these receptors have been implicated in a number of central nervous system diseases. Designing potent and selective antagonists of these receptors, especially of kainate receptors, is useful for developing potential treatment strategies for these neurological diseases. Here, we report on two RNA aptamers designed to individually inhibit kainate and AMPA receptors. To improve the biostability of these aptamers, we also chemically modified these aptamers by substituting their 2'-OH group with 2'-fluorine. These 2'-fluoro aptamers, FB9s-b and FB9s-r, were markedly resistant to RNase-catalyzed degradation, with a half-life of ∼5 days in rat cerebrospinal fluid or serum-containing medium. Furthermore, FB9s-r blocked AMPA receptor activity. Aptamer FB9s-b selectively inhibited GluK1 and GluK2 kainate receptor subunits, and also GluK1/GluK5 and GluK2/GluK5 heteromeric kainate receptors with equal potency. This inhibitory profile makes FB9s-b a powerful template for developing tool molecules and drug candidates for treatment of neurological diseases involving excessive activities of the GluK1 and GluK2 subunits.




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Spectral analysis and representation of solutions of integro-differential equations with fractional exponential kernels

V. V. Vlasov and N. A. Rautian
Trans. Moscow Math. Soc. 80 (2020), 169-188.
Abstract, references and article information




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Finite-dimensional approximations to the Poincaré–Steklov operator for general elliptic boundary value problems in domains with cylindrical and periodic exits to infinity

S. A. Nazarov
Trans. Moscow Math. Soc. 80 (2020), 1-51.
Abstract, references and article information





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Terapia inédita reverte leucemia incurável em bebê de 1 ano

Tratamento genético foi testado em Layla Richards que estava desenganada pelos médicos. Especialistas ressaltam que os resultados são iniciais e podem não ocorrer em outros pacientes.

The post Terapia inédita reverte leucemia incurável em bebê de 1 ano appeared first on Saúde Próspera.



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el

What happens to a fund that is listed pursuant to a product specific rule filing once the fund is eligible to operate under Rule 6c-11 and elects to list on Nasdaq under Rule 5704?

Publication Date: Apr 10 2020 The SEC will withdraw the existing approval order and the fund will become subject to the requirements of Rule 6c-11 and Nasdaq Rule 5704....




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What types of ETFs are eligible to be listed under Nasdaq Rule 5704?

Publication Date: Apr 10 2020 ETFs that meet the definition of “Exchange Traded Fund” in Nasdaq Rule 5704(a)(1)(A) are eligible to be considered for listing pursuant to Nasdaq Rule 5704. ETFs that are excluded from operating pursuant to Rule 6c-11 under the Investment Company Act of 1940 are not eligible to list under Nasdaq Rule 5704....




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How can a company rely on the COVID-19 exception to shareholder approval requirements?

Publication Date: May 4 2020 On May 1, 2020, Nasdaq adopted Rule 5636T, operative through, and including, June 30, 2020, to provide listed companies with a temporary exception from certain shareholder approval requirements. A Company must submit an application to Nasdaq’s Listing Qualifications Department demonstrating that the transaction satisfies the requirements in Rule 5636T and must provide the Notification Form: Listing of Additional Shares (“LAS Form”) required by...




el

Firefox 76.0 released with critical security patches – update now

Firefox's latest version is out, with new password management features and a raft of security fixes.




el

Secrecy, spies and the global South: intelligence studies beyond the 'Five Eyes' alliance

6 November 2019 , Volume 95, Number 6

Zakia Shiraz and Richard J. Aldrich

The study of secrecy and spies remain subjects dominated by Anglo-American experiences. In recent years there has been some effort to refocus the lens of research upon ‘intelligence elsewhere’, including the global South. This is partly because of intense interest in the Arab Spring and ‘managed democracy’, placing a wider range of secret services under the spotlight. However, the approach to research is still dominated by concepts and methods derived from studying the English-speaking states of the ‘Five Eyes’ alliance and their European outriders. This article calls for a re-examination of research strategies for Intelligence Studies and for those theorizing surveillance, suggesting that both fields have much to learn from area studies and development studies, especially in the realm of research practice and ethics. If the growing number of academics specializing in intelligence genuinely wish to move forward and examine the global South they will need to rethink their tool-kit and learn from other disciplines. We suggest there is a rich tradition to draw upon.




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Ever Closer Alliance? New Developments in Russia-China Relations

Invitation Only Research Event

11 December 2019 - 9:00am to 1:00pm

Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE

Event participants

Yang Cheng, Professor of International Relations, Assistant Dean, School of International Relations and Public Affairs, Shanghai International Studies University
Yu Jie, Senior Research Fellow, Asia-Pacific Programme, Chatham House
Marcin Kaczmarski, Lecturer in Security Studies, University of Glasgow
Natasha Kuhrt, Lecturer, Department of War Studies, King’s College London
Bobo Lo, Non-Resident Fellow, Lowy Institute
Alexey Maslov, Professor, School of Asian Studies, National Research University, Higher School of Economics, Moscow

At face value, recent years have seen a deepening in Sino-Russian cooperation, from energy agreements, to the recent Huawei-MTS deal developing a 5G network in Russia. Ever larger-in-scale joint military exercises add to fears by some that the 'axis of convenience' is now a more genuine – and threatening – partnership.

This workshop will offer a sober assessment of the latest developments in Sino-Russian relations, shedding light on the underpinnings and practical realities of the relationship as well as on the long-term challenges of upholding cooperation.

The panel will discuss the different and potentially diverging interpretations of contemporary Sino-Russian relations as well as the implications for the rules-based international order.

This event is co-organized by the Chatham House Russia and Eurasia Programme and the University of Exeter and is supported by the British International Studies Association.

Attendance at this event is by invitation only. 

Anna Morgan

Administrator, Ukraine Forum
+44 (0)20 7389 3274




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The Belt and Road Initiative: geo-economics and Indo-Pacific security competition

8 January 2020 , Volume 96, Number 1

Mingjiang Li

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has been regarded by international society as a major policy tool in China's geo-economic strategy. Under this policy platform, Beijing has pledged to invest billions of dollars in the infrastructure and industrial sectors across Eurasia and in the Indo-Pacific nations. It is widely believed that such huge amount of investment will inevitably generate significant geostrategic repercussions in these regions. In response to the BRI, the United States and other powers have come up with a ‘free and open Indo-Pacific’ strategy. This article attempts to address the following question: what impact is the BRI likely to have on the security ties between China and the other major players in the Indo-Pacific? The author finds that the BRI may significantly transform China's international security policy and the expansion of Beijing's security influence may further intensify the security competition between China and other major powers in the Indo-Pacific region. The article also proposes a new analytical angle for the study of geo-economics that unpacks the role of economic activities and processes in generating geopolitical intentions and catalysing geopolitical competition.




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Developmental peace in east Asia and its implications for the Indo-Pacific

8 January 2020 , Volume 96, Number 1

Ling Wei

This article adopts a constructive approach to examining the problem of the Indo-Pacific construct. Through reflection on the east Asian experience, it proposes an analytical framework of developmental peace as a constellation of international practices, which means that the more economic development is prioritized by states in regional processes, the more likely it is that a sustainable peace will be achieved. States participating in regional integration comprise a community of practice. On the basis of a shared understanding that development is of overriding importance and underpins security and state legitimacy, the community takes economic development as the anchoring practice; this practice embodies and enacts constitutive rules and fundamental norms for a broader set of practices in regional processes, such as peaceful coexistence and non-interference. The more economic development is prioritized on domestic and regional agendas, the more likely it is that conflicts in the security realm will be relaxed or even resolved to protect security interests. The author draws some useful implications from the developmental peace in east Asia for the Indo-Pacific construct, among which the most important include building shared understandings on the prioritization of economic development, taking advantage of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and using the code of conduct process as a vehicle and best practice to facilitate rule-making for the maritime order. Finally, the author briefly discusses the contributions of the study and limitations of the model.




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Japan-Russia Relations in the Abe-Putin Era

Research Event

16 April 2020 - 1:00pm to 2:00pm

Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE

Event participants

Alexander Bukh, Senior Lecturer, International Relations, Victoria University, Wellington, New Zealand; Author of These Islands Are Ours: The Social Construction of Territorial Disputes in Northeast Asia (Stanford University Press 2020)
Chair: Mathieu Boulègue, Research Fellow, Russia and Eurasia Programme

Japan and Russia are often referred to as 'distant neighbours'. 

In the early days of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's second term in 2012, Japan sought to open a new era of bilateral relations with Russia. However, recent negotiations on the Kuril Islands/Northern Territories territorial dispute have stalled. Despite Abe’s extensive efforts to resolve the dispute, no concrete agreement has been reached so far. 

The speaker will provide an overview of the current state of Japan-Russia relations, including the prospect of resolving the territorial dispute during Prime Minister Abe's remaining days in office.

 

Lucy Ridout

Programme Administrator, Asia-Pacific Programme
+44 (0) 207 314 2761




el

Sanctions on Russia: Will Asia Help?

Invitation Only Research Event

17 April 2020 - 10:00am to 11:30am

Event participants

Maria Shagina, CEES Postdoctoral Fellow, Center for Eastern European Studies, University of Zurich
Chair: Richard Connolly, Associate Fellow, Russia and Eurasia Programme, Chatham House

It has been nearly six years since the West imposed sanctions on Russia, targeting Russia's energy, defence and financial sectors. The sanctions exposed Russia's key vulnerabilities - dependence on Western capital and advanced technology, with knock-on effects in other sectors.

In an effort to offset the impact of sanctions, Russia has attempted a diversification strategy to non-Western states. The Asia-Pacific has emerged as a new export market for hydrocarbons and weapons, and as the main alternative to Western capital. Russia's self-proclaimed 'turn to the East' is intended to alleviate the sanctions burden and buy valuable time to come up with long-term solutions; but it has come at a high cost. 

In this discussion, Maria Shagina will examine the ways in which Asian states have helped mitigate the impact of Western sanctions and the pitfalls associated with it, while assessing the implications of Russia's pivot to Asia on its import substitution policy, and the effectiveness of sanctions overall.

Event attributes

Chatham House Rule

Department/project

Anna Morgan

Administrator, Ukraine Forum
+44 (0)20 7389 3274




el

Catching and Releasing: Part 2

There.s more mathematics involved in juggling than just trying to make sure that the number of balls (or chainsaws) that hits the ground stays at zero. Subjects such as combinatorics and abstract algebra help jugglers answer important questions, such as whether a particular juggling pattern can actually be juggled. For example, can balls be juggled so that the time period that each ball stays aloft alternates between five counts and one? The answer is Yes. Math also tells you that the number of balls needed for such a juggling pattern is the average of the counts, in this case three. Once a pattern is shown to be juggleable and the number of balls needed is known, equations of motion determine the speed with which each ball must be thrown and the maximum height it will attain. Obviously the harder a juggler throws, the faster and higher an object will go. Unfortunately hang time increases proportionally to the square root of the height, so the difficulty of keeping many objects in the air increases very quickly. Both math and juggling have been around for millennia yet questions still remain in both subjects. As two juggling mathematicians wrote, .A juggler, like a mathematician, is never finished: there is always another great unsolved problem.




el

Catching and Releasing: Part 1

There.s more mathematics involved in juggling than just trying to make sure that the number of balls (or chainsaws) that hits the ground stays at zero. Subjects such as combinatorics and abstract algebra help jugglers answer important questions, such as whether a particular juggling pattern can actually be juggled. For example, can balls be juggled so that the time period that each ball stays aloft alternates between five counts and one? The answer is Yes. Math also tells you that the number of balls needed for such a juggling pattern is the average of the counts, in this case three. Once a pattern is shown to be juggleable and the number of balls needed is known, equations of motion determine the speed with which each ball must be thrown and the maximum height it will attain. Obviously the harder a juggler throws, the faster and higher an object will go. Unfortunately hang time increases proportionally to the square root of the height, so the difficulty of keeping many objects in the air increases very quickly. Both math and juggling have been around for millennia yet questions still remain in both subjects. As two juggling mathematicians wrote, .A juggler, like a mathematician, is never finished: there is always another great unsolved problem.




el

Treating Tremors - Helping with Parkinson's disease - Part 1

Researcher: Christopher Butson, Scientific Computing and Imaging Institute, University of Utah. Christopher Butson talks about work he's done to help treat Parkinson's disease.




el

Going Into a Shell

Researcher: Derek Moulton, University of Oxford Moment: http://www.ams.org/samplings/mathmoments/mm138-shells.pdf Description: Derek Moulton explains the math behind the shapes of seashells.






el

Letter from the Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board, Evelyne Freitag, to shareholders

Dear Shareholders, As Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board, I am contacting you personally today in advance of the Annual General Meeting to ask for your continued trust and support.




el

euromicron AG’s Annual General Meeting adopts all agenda items and elects new Supervisory Board

euromicron AG, a medium-sized technology group and expert on digital networking of business and production processes, held its Annual General Meeting 2019 in Frankfurt/Main on August 29, 2019. 42 percent of the share capital was represented. At the Annual General Meeting, the Executive Board reported on the operating performance in fiscal year 2018 and in the first half of 2019 and gave an outlook on the current fiscal year. One focus was on the implementation of the measures initiated to focus on and further develop the business model.




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euromicron involved in modernizing the campus of Kiel University

ssm euromicron GmbH, a system house subsidiary of euromicron AG, is involved in a project to provide the technical equipment for the new building for the Institute of Geosciences at Kiel’s Christian Albrechts University. The seven-story new building is part of a campus-wide modernization initiative that is one of the largest public high-rise projects in the federal state of Schleswig-Holstein.




el

Hydel blow away rivals to keep Champs title

Hydel, despite trailing their rivals for two straight days, easily retained their title




el

Some of the latest climate models provide unrealistically high projections of future warming

A new study from University of Michigan climate researchers concludes that some of the latest-generation climate models may be overly sensitive to carbon dioxide increases and therefore project future warming that is unrealistically high.




el

Study helps arboreta, botanical gardens meet genetic diversity conservation goals

In a ground breaking study, an international team of 21 scientists led by Sean Hoban, Ph.D., Conservation Biologist at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois, evaluated five genera spanning the plant tree of life (Hibiscus, Magnolia, Pseudophoenix, Quercus and Zamia) to understand how much genetic diversity currently exists in collections in botanical gardens and arboreta worldwide.




el

Management of natural assets is key to sustainable development: Inclusive wealth provides the way forward

Sovereign nations typically measure economic success in terms of GDP (income) but this approach is risky as it fails to track and measure the impact of this on nature. Inclusive wealth, on the other hand captures financial and produced capital, but also the skills in our workforce (human capital), the cohesion in our society (social capital) and the value of our environment (natural capital).




el

How modelling articulates the science of climate change

To imagine earth without greenhouse gases in its atmosphere is to turn the familiar blue marble into a barren lump of rock and ice on which the average surface temperature hovers around -18ºC. Such a planet would not receive less of the sunlight which is the ultimate source of all Earth's warmth. But when the energy it absorbed from the sunlight was re-emitted as infrared radiation, as the laws of physics require, it would head unimpeded back out into space.




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Parallel threats of COVID-19, climate change, require 'brave, visionary and collaborative leadership': UN chief

And against the backdrop of threatened lives, crippled businesses and damaged economies, the UN chief warned the Petersberg Climate Dialogue in Berlin that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are also under threat.




el

US-China Economic Relations & COVID-19: What's Next?

The world's two largest economies are both partners and rivals, deeply intertwined but also with divergent interests. How will these contradictions resolve themselves following COVID-19?




el

Where can I buy YouTube subscribers safely?




el

Your Slow Website is Killing Your Business- Level up with our affordable VPS server




el

What is the most efficient way to select element specific to the H1




el

Gaussian blur is removing all transparent pixels from image




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Web development ,Web Design & Graphic Design services - 16% Discount May 2020




el

Press Release: Largest international gathering on Biosafety meets in Bonn to finalize arrangements for the Cartagena Protocol.




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Press Release: International Community to Meet in Germany for a United Nations Conference on Living Modified Organisms and Biodiversity.




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Press release: Agreement reached to work towards a legally binding instrument on Liability and Redress with regard to GMOs.